ITC PROMOTES HEALTHY EATING HABITS AND SAFE TRAVELS IN RAMADAN

Promotional poster for ITC’s inaugural Ramadan SEED online sharing session which took place via ZOOM, starring Dr. Barakatun-Nisak Mohd Yusof as guest speaker

PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA, 22 APRIL 2021 – In commemoration of the month of Ramadan 1442H, Islamic Tourism Centre (ITC) today has conducted an online webinar focused on healthy eating habits during this month of fasting, to ensure satiety and optimal energy levels throughout the day, when the fast is observed.

Entitled “From Sahur to Iftar – Healthy Journey: Eating Well”, the session is the inaugural instalment of ITC’s SEED online programmes. SEED, an abbreviation for Share, Enrich, Enhance, Develop, bodes well with ITC’s branding, namely, its tagline “Enhancing Ties, Enriching Knowledge”.

The guest speaker for this webinar was Dr. Barakatun-Nisak Mohd Yusof, Dietitian at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) cum Council Member of Malaysia Dietitians’ Association (MDA).

The month of Ramadan, ninth in order of the Hijri calendar, is popularly known as the month of fasting. Throughout this month, besides embarking on a period of deep reflection and worship, Muslims also commemorate the revelation of the Quran to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), celebrated as Nuzul al-Quran, which falls on 29 April this year.

Moderated by Ms Nadhirah Aripin, an ITC Senior Executive from the Research & Training Division, the webinar covered the following topics:

– Discussing challenges faced during Ramadan fasting

– Brief run-through of quick facts on Ramadan fasting

– Significant physiological changes during the fast

– Benefits of the fast

– Nutritional practices of the general Malaysian population-

– Components to eating well in the month of Ramadan

– Meal checklist while shopping at Ramadan Bazaars and during Eid called PICK (Plan, Identify, Careful and Kongsi).

 “To me, Ramadan presents an opportunity for many things. In terms of lifestyle, it helps us to lead a healthier lifestyle. This is even more critical as we know now that nutritional practices among Malaysians are not optimal,” said Dr. Nisak as she gave her parting advice.

She added: “There are four tips to eating well during Ramadan – choosing the right type of food for your Sahur, choosing the right amount (of food) for Iftar, staying hydrated, and (using the) PICK (checklist) to select food wisely and avoid temptation when buying at the Ramadan Bazaars.”

The session witnessed a participation of 51 people from a cross-section of professions, namely, tour guides, academicians, government agencies, product owners and students, across Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Pahang.

Questions raised, when the Q&A segment was opened to the floor, were mostly centred on tips to ensure healthy eating in light of health conditions such as nephrocalcinosis (kidney stones) and diabetes.

The Director-General of ITC, Dato’ Dr. Mohmed Razip Haji Hasan was also present during the session. “It is an honour to have someone with very extensive knowledge on dietetics to share some tips and tricks on eating well during Ramadan…It is a very interesting and insightful presentation.”

He said: “Apart from training and capacity building, ITC also strives to educate the public about responsibility and compliance to safety and security in travel especially during the fasting months and MCO. We have to care for ourselves, eat well, and be healthy in order to be responsible citizens. It is not just about traveling in style, but also traveling responsibly that would contribute to a healthy body, mind and soul, ultimately, insya Allah.”

He further added that ITC’s SEED programme is a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts to give back to society and the industry in the form of knowledge sharing that can be practised by all.

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Islamic Tourism Centre (ITC) is an entity under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Malaysia tasked to develop the Islamic tourism segment for Malaysia. It advocates for Muslim-friendly tourism by offering research and market intelligence, training, industry development consultation, Muslim-friendly tourism and hospitality services standards and certification, and information exchange.

Malaysia was named top country in the region in Muslim-friendly tourism sector by the Global Islamic Economy Report (GIER) 2020/2021. The receipt of the award is added motivation for ITC to continue to strengthen its efforts in being a prime mover and leading institution to ensure Malaysia is at the forefront of Muslim-friendly tourism and hospitality (MFTH).

For further details, kindly contact:

Islamic Tourism Centre,
Level 13, Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia
No. 2 Tower 1, Jalan P5/6,
Precinct 5, 62200 Putrajaya, Malaysia

Tel: 03-8891 7177 or via email itc@mymuslimtrip.com/v2